Tag Archives: employment

You Have to Be Rich to Get a Minimum Wage Job! What It Cost for My Teen Relative to Get Their First Job

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My young relative landed the first job to which he ever applied. It was so easy: he applied online, arranged a time after school to attend the interview, accepted the employment contract, opened his first chequing account with a debit card to permit direct deposit of his pay, and showed up for work on time with the correct gear. But it’s a good thing his family was rich enough to pay all the costs required to get that first minimum-wage job!

What Are the Costs for a Student to Get Qualified for Their First Part-time Job?

Obviously, every job has different requirements. But many jobs have similar needs and the costs are similar to the person trying to land the job.

Here’s what my young relative needed to spend to get a job with a city Parks and Recreation department:

  • Emergency First Aid and CPR training $53
  • Police check $25
  • High Five Principles of Healthy Childhood Development $79
  • Acquiring the required safety equipment for the job $44
  • Leadership in Training $110

That’s right. He paid $311 to get qualified for his first minimum-wage job.

How Long Will He Have to Work to Re-Pay the Costs for Gaining a Job?

At $11 an hour, which is more than he will actually make after deductions, it will take over 28 hours of work for this student to pay back the costs of getting his job. At 3-6 hours of work per week, that’s a long, long time!

The costs for a student learning to be a life guard are much higher. They must take swimming lessons for years and then pay for their life guarding courses and certificates.

Isn’t It Outrageous to Pay So Much to Get a Job?

Well at first it seems crazy to pay that much just to get a minimum-wage job.
But then you start thinking about college and university costs.

To get a degree in Early Childhood Education from Sheridan College costs $8492 just for the tuition fees. I’m sure there are other costs and they may be quite significant.

What does the average E.C.E. earn? The jobs posted online in Ontario today  pay $14/hour. The payscale.com website says the average is $15/hour.

Without any deductions, at $14/hour, it would take about 606 hours of work just to pay the tuition cost for an E.C.E. diploma. That’s more than 15 weeks of working 40 hour weeks, although many of these jobs don’t offer 40 hours.

Yes, it costs a lot of money to get a job!

Be Prepared to Volunteer Just to Get a Job

My young relative also volunteered (unpaid of course) for over 130 hours before applying for the job. We know that the employer looks more favourably upon applications from people who have volunteered with their programs. It gives them a chance to test the person’s reliability and skills for free and shows a commitment to working.

We know other young people working as camp counsellors, life guards and swimming instructors. They were definitely expected to volunteer before applying for paid employment.

Do I Think My Young Relative Was Foolish to Pay So Much to Get a Job?

No, I don’t. I think a job is more than just the pay. My relative enjoys the type of work and is considering working in that area after graduating. It’s an interesting job and could lead to other types of employment in the future. There is a chance to make contacts and to obtain valuable references.

I do wonder and worry, though, if students in low-income families are not even able to apply for such jobs because of the high cost of the prerequisite training. If so, that’s deplorable.

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Did you ever list how much it cost to help someone find a job? Was it shocking how much money it took to find work? Please share your views with a comment.

Should We Legislate an End to Unpaid Internships?

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Today I was speaking to a lovely woman that we meet every few years and catching up on her news sort of like in the old play Same Time Next Year. I asked how her adult children were doing and what I heard made me angry. The discussion left me wondering should we legislate an end to unpaid internships?

Unpaid Internships Used to be Common in Publishing, Theatre, and Broadcasting

Back in the early Cretaceous when I went to school, unpaid internships were unusual but not unheard of. Certain industries were prone to them. Publishing companies, including those producing books, magazines and newspapers, often required prospective editors and staff writers to start by working for free. Their jobs were often menial at first, involving making coffee and filing reports. Gradually they were assigned writing and editing jobs and eventually if the stars aligned they were hired as cub reporters and editorial assistants. These publishers were often barely solvent and couldn’t afford to hire many new staff.

Theatre was another area where the companies rarely made money so to get a start many aspiring actors, stage hands, and directors had to serve time in unpaid positions. Radio, TV and presumably internet broadcasters also worked on thin margins. Some used it as an excuse to weed out potential new hires by making them “pay their dues” by working for free until an opening could be found.

Are Unpaid Internships Now Just Slave Labour Practices?

Something seems to have changed since those days when the dinosaurs were dying off. Now it seems unpaid internships are the norm in many fields and industries.

Why?

The woman I was speaking with was explaining her child had completed her degree and was ready to start working as a music therapist. The position she wanted, however, required her to have 1000 hours of unpaid internship work in the field.

One THOUSAND  hours. That’s about 6 months of working with no pay.

How Can Someone Pay the Rent While Working for No Pay?

Her child agreed to the terms required because she loves the work and wants very much to succeed. She had to pay her rent, buy her food and pay her transit to get to her unpaid job, not just for a week or two, but for months.

The apartment she could afford with no pay required her to spend 3 hours a day commuting. She had to take 2 buses, a train, and walk 1 km each time she went to work or came home. The hours demanded of her were excessive, often up to 12 hours per day. That left no time to hold a part-time job except on weekends to pay her living costs.

How is this reasonable? How is this right?

What’s the Solution to this Problem?

This is not the first time I’ve heard this kind of personal story of an unpaid internship. It’s left me wondering: Is it time to crack down on these practices? Should we be legislating a maximum length of time that people can be required to work unpaid?

I don’t have the answers but I certainly have lots of questions.

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Have you had to work as an unpaid intern? Has someone in your family? Please share your experiences with a comment.